By Ankit Panda
Narendra Modi, the BJP’s candidate for prime minister in India’s 2014 elections, may use covert ops in Pakistan.
Should Narendra Modi emerge as India’s prime minister at the end of this month, many expect a more muscular Indian foreign policy. With a few exceptions, Modi himself has been remarkably vague on his intentions for Indian foreign policy but, true to his “strong man” image, he has made sure to lambaste both China and Pakistan on the campaign trail. Indian foreign policy has generally been insulated from the vagaries of its prime ministers with one important exception: Pakistan. India’s relationship with Pakistan and its ongoing struggle against Pakistan-based terrorists are a source of major disagreement within the country’s political elite. In particular, while the incumbent Congress Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has been keen to make progress on trade talks and return to the Composite Dialogue Process, Modi has different ideas about how India ought to respond to and handle Pakistan-based provocations.
One of the key differences between Modi and his Congress predecessor would be the former’s preference for leaning forward against Pakistan-based terror instead of exercising restraint. Restraint prevented escalation following the deadly November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, which were carried out by Laskhar-e-Taiba with the assistance and blessing of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence. On the campaign trail, Modi recently recommended that India follow a “zero tolerance” policy against terrorism — in his view, following a major terrorist incident, the Indian government should “do more and speak less.”
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